Chrysler to shut down

[Jaysyl]

FOXNews.com - Chrysler to Close All 30 Manufacturing Plants for One Month - Local News | News Articles | National News | US News





This does not look good

 

[Grizzly]

No, it doesn't!

 

[hammersley]

There's always a shutdown this time of year........

and "throw out the union" help me please... ...

 

[HBarlow]

I am real sorry to hear that.

They'll probably have to pay their union employees full salary and benefits during the shut down, maybe special holiday pay.

 

[MA2LA]

the unions still have full benefits and most of their wages during this shut down.

 

[DonFitzwater]

I could only hope they kick the UNION bums to the curb. Maybe then my truck that was made in St. Louis would be on par with my wifes truck made in Mexico by non-union employees. And if they all three go under, I am my own warranty station.

 

[DBoggs]

I ask this question out of simple lack of knowing so don't flame me for it. Are the workers at the plants in Mexico also members of the UAW? Or are they non union because they are in a different country?



Duane

 

[abrankod]

Um, guys... Chrysler and every other automaker shut their lines down for about 2 weeks every single year to retool for the new model year. All they're talking about is extending that 2 weeks by another 2 weeks... So all in all its not as bad as everyone is making it out to be... even if it is bad.

-Dan

 

[Grizzly]

I ask this question out of simple lack of knowing so don't flame me for it. Are the workers at the plants in Mexico also members of the UAW? Or are they non union because they are in a different country?



Duane

No, the auto workers in Mexico are not part of the UAW, which is one reason why they produce a better truck. The auto workers in Mexico know that if they screw up, they will get fired and there's a long line of workers outside the gate ready to take their place. It takes much more to fire a UAW, so they don't care if they screw up.

 

[HBarlow]

Quote from the original Fox News article that started this thread: "Operations at the 30 plants will be idled at the end of shift on Friday, Dec. 19, and will not come back online until Jan. 19, 2009, or later. "

It't the "or later" line tag on the sentence that worries most of us. That sounds pretty open ended or uncertain to me.

To take Grizzly's statement above a step further . . . I believe the Mercedes, BMW, Nissan, Honda, and Toyota plants in the south are also non-union and known for the high quality automobiles they build.

Is it only coincidence that the "big three" with their incredible burden of UAW employees are the only ones in financial trouble and begging for bailouts?

IMO it is only a matter of time until all of the US manufacturing plants who are buried under the incredible costs and inefficiencies of the UAW or other labor union work rules and labor costs will be gone. I don't wish that any man loses his job but the simple fact is that a manufacturer burdened with union labor cannot compete in the world economy.

 

[TboneMan]

"The company needs to match production to slowing demand".



Hmm... if management had thought about this sooner, and the UAW would have allowed it sooner, they might not be in the situation they are in.





An industry can't survive if that keeps pounding out product when there's no market for it.





I'm not sure if it effected all plants, but I remember back in the early '90s, I was waiting for a Dodge Dakota (the first year they put the 318ci V8 in it). The thing was held up for months due to factory shutdowns.



Hopefully, they can get over the hump, renegotiate the UAW contracts and survive.

 

[Tractorat]

Well, I have a question. I've seen the headlines, but I haven't read the articles. Chrysler is shutting down for a month (or longer). But, what about in their "off shore" manufacturing areas such as Mexico (where the diesel RAM is made, for example). I can't imagine that, Mexico for instance, is encumbered by the Detroit unions.



Maybe that can be their way out of this mess.



TRat

 

[LBARTLETT]

they just announced this morning that the chevy/chrysler merger talks have started back up

 

[Tractorat]

Bush just announced a bail out for Chrysler and GM. Gives the expression "buy American" a whole new meaning, doesn't it ?



If they don't know down the hourly wage for the auto worker to $45 to match the Japanese, I will NEVER AGAIN buy an American made car. I don't care if they are 10 times better than foreign, I just will NEVER EVER buy a new America car again. And I'm not the only one that feels that way.



Just my 2 cents



TRat

 

[JRBurton]

I'll take a Honda over an American made car any day, they run better and are more reliable. The big 3 don't build cars that the public wants anymore, they need to come to the 21st century.



John

 

[Steve St.Laurent]

The big 3 don't build cars that the public wants anymore, they need to come to the 21st century.



John

It's funny - I hear this stuff all the time but the facts don't bear that out - In Depth: The Year's Best-Selling Cars - Forbes.com



Top 10 best selling vehicles for 2008 (January - November):



10. Ford Focus (184,152)

9. Dodge Ram (229,222)

8. Chevy Impala (244,692)

7. Nissan Altima (252,357)

6. Toyota Corolla (328,878)

5. Honda Accord (350,638)

4. Honda Civic (352,248)

3. Toyota Camry (411,342)

2. Chevy Silverado (431,725)

1. Ford F150 (473,933)



So 5 of the top 10 selling vehicles in the US are made by the big 3) so somebody wants them.



You also hear the quality thing regularly. Here's the facts on those:



Subject: Who makes the best cars?



1. Which country can boast that their brands occupy 2 of the top 3 spots for long-term reliability?



Answer: United States.

Per J. D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study, Mercury and Cadillac are in the top 3, along with Lexus. And in 2007, Buick was tied with Lexus for=2 0the top spot.

404 ERROR - FILE NOT FOUND | J. D. Power and Associates



2. As of August 2007, which manufacturer had the most recalled vehicles in the U. S. for that year?



Answer: Volkswagen.

According to Business Week, Volkswagen had the most recalls at this time a year ago. The second worst was Toyota.

Auto Technology News - BusinessWeek /content/aug2007/bw20070810_455098.htm



3. Pick the brand from each group that has the highest initial quality.

a. Answer : Cadillac (better than both Acura and BMW)

b. Answer: Mercury (better than both Honda and Nissan)

c. Answer: Chevrolet (better than Acura, BMW, and Mazda)

This is according to J. D. Power’s Initial Quality Survey.

404 ERROR - FILE NOT FOUND | J. D. Power and Associates



4. Which midsize sedan has the highest initial quality?



Answer: The Chevrolet Malibu has better initial quality than any competitor, including the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and Nissan Altima. The Ford Fusion also beat all three Japanese competitors.

This too is from the J. D. Power Initial Quality Survey, which also reveals that above average are American brands Mercury, Ford, Cadillac, Chevrolet , Pontiac, Lincoln, and Buick. Below average are import brands Acura, Kia, Nissan, BMW, Mazda, VW, Subaru, and Scion (and several others).

JDPower.com | Not Found

http://www.jdpower. com/corporate/news/releases/pressrelease. aspx?ID=2008063



5. Which large sedan has the highest initial quality?



Answer: Again per J. D. Power, the highest quality large car is the Pontiac Grand Prix, beating the Toyota Avalon. Two other Detroit cars that beat the Avalon are the Mercury Sable and Mercury Grand Marquis.

JDPower.com | Not Found



6. Which midsize pickup has the highest initial quality?



Answer: The Dodge Dakota has the best quality for midsize pickups, proving that Chrysler too can beat the imports. Both the Dakota and the Ford Ranger beat the Toyota Tacoma.

JDPower.com | Not Found



7. Which car is the most economical overall?



Answer: Per Edmunds.com, the premier automotive analysis site, the most economical car in America, taking into account not only mileage but all costs, is the Chevrolet Aveo. The Honda Fit is #3 and the Toyota Prius is a distant #34.

http://www.edmunds.com/help/about/pr...6/article.html



8. Which car did the Los Angeles Times describe as “a better car than BMW or Mercedes or Lexus or Infiniti”?



Answer: “Cadillac makes a better car than BMW or Mercedes or Lexus or Infiniti, and that car is the 2008 CTS. No other car in the mass market dares so much as this expressive and audacious bit of automotive avant-gardism. ” Dan Neil, LA Times. (It might be interesting to know that the latest sales figures for full size luxury cars had the new Lincoln MKS at #3, just behind BMW and Audi, but ahead of Lexus and the Cadillac CTS. )

http://www.latimes.com/classified/au...3.photogallery



9. Which company makes the winner of the 2008 “Green Car of the Year” award?



Answer: The Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid is the winner of this award. How could a full-size SUV defeat the media darling Toyota Prius? Read the link below and you will discover,



“What’s equally eye-opening is that the Tahoe’s 21 mpg city fuel efficiency rating is the same as that of the city EPA rating for the four-cylinder Toyota Camry sedan. ” (The new F150, non-hybrid, also gets 21 mpg highway. )



Did you catch that? A huge, full-size SUV from Chevrolet that gets the same city mileage as a 4-cylinder Toyota Camry!! Chevy obtained this remarkable achievement through the use of its 2-mode=2 0hybrid system, a technology that Toyota does not have.

Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid Named 2008 Green Car of the Year | GreenCar.com



10. Which car was selected by the North American automotive press corps as the “North American Car of the Year” for 2007?



Answer: Not only was the Saturn Aura picked by the automotive press corps as better than the Honda Fit and the Toyota Camry, “When a panel of 47 journalists named the Saturn Aura the North American Car of the Year over the Toyota Camry, the vote wasn't even close, 205-89. ” Chicago Tribune, 1/15/07

2008 Candidates



11. Which car won the same award for 2008?



Answer: GM again crushed the Japanese competition in 2008 when the Malibu received 190 votes to the Honda Accord’s 95. The Accord actually came in 3rd since GM’s other finalist, the Cadillac CTS, received 165 votes.

2008 Candidates



12. Which company had a luxury vehicle, a midsize sedan, and a large truck removed from the Consumer Reports recommended vehicles list in Oct ober 2007 because of mounting quality problems?



Answer: Toyota’s much publicized quality problems resulted in Consumer Reports actually removing from their recommended vehicles list the Lexus GS luxury car, Camry V6 sedan, and Tundra pickup. This demotion occurred in October 2007.



This Q&A list was put together by an employee of an American car company who just might lose his job because of public perceptions that do not match reality. If you are one of the many Americans who gave up on Detroit’s cars because of a bad experience many years ago, it’s time to rethink your position. Rethink Detroit.

 

[ChrisOlson]

Steve

How about a huge round of applause for you these facts speak for themselves. All the nay sayers about American made vehicles in your face. I have made a conscious choice years ago to buy American Buy Union made vehicles I have purchased. Have all been great including both my harleys and my wifes jeep liberty great 0 problems. my 99 dodge yes there is problems not due to quality of labor. design flaws. If we as american citizens supported our country by buying american made products more, maybe we would not be in the financial mess that we are. do not even get me started on the bank bailout right now. Steve thanks for showing the facts.

chris

 

[ChrisOlson]

Some more facts to support Steves facts

2008 VEHICLES BUILT BY UNION MEMBERS
IN THE UNITED STATES

UAW CARS
Buick Lucerne
Cadillac CTS
Cadillac DTS
Cadillac STS
Cadillac XLR
Chevrolet Cobalt
Chevrolet Corvette
Chevrolet Malibu/Malibu Hybrid
Chrysler Sebring
Dodge Avenger
Dodge Caliber
Dodge Viper
Ford Focus
Ford Mustang Ford Taurus
Lincoln MKS
Mazda 6
Mercury Sable
Mitsubishi Eclipse
Mitsubishi Galant
Pontiac G5
Pontiac G6
Pontiac Solstice
Pontiac Vibe
Saturn Aura/Aura Hybrid
Saturn Sky
Toyota Corolla*

UAW PICKUPS
Chevrolet Colorado
Dodge Dakota
Dodge Ram Pickup*
Ford Explorer Sport Trac
Ford F-Series*
Ford Ranger GMC Canyon
Isuzu i-Series
Lincoln Mark LT
Mazda B-series
Mitsubishi Raider
Toyota Tacoma*

UAW SUVs/CUVs
Buick Enclave
Cadillac Escalade
Cadillac Escalade ESV
Cadillac SRX
Chevrolet Suburban*
Chevrolet Tahoe/
Tahoe Hybrid
Chrysler Aspen
Dodge Durango
Dodge Nitro
Ford Escape/Escape Hybrid
Ford Expedition
Ford Explorer
Ford Taurus X
GMC Acadia
GMC Yukon/Yukon Hybrid GMC Yukon Denali
Hummer H1
Hummer H2
Hummer H3
Jeep Commander
Jeep Compass
Jeep Grand Cherokee
Jeep Liberty
Jeep Patriot
Jeep Wrangler
Lincoln Navigator
Mazda Tribute/Tribute Hybrid
Mercury Mariner/Mariner Hybrid
Mercury Mountaineer
Mitsubishi Endeavor
Saturn Outlook

UAW VANS
Ford E-series
Chevrolet Express Chevrolet Uplander
GMC Savana

 

[SBall]

One of my Chrysler horror stories

While working for Rockwell Automation I've had a unique opportunity to see the inner workings of many manufacturing plants in the states. I recall the time that our company had arranged for an off-site training session for Chrysler maintenance technicians from their Newark assembly plant. The training was held in our Wilmington office. Our instructor who was brought in from one of our New England offices was heckled out of the class by the Chrysler students and flew home on the second day of what was to be a one-week class. The instructor said the Chrysler students were having flatulence contests in the class among other things, and behaved like a bunch of babies.

I was the unfortunate one to be recruited to step in and conduct the remainder of the class as the fill-in instructor. I got through a day and a half before I too began to experience heckling and jokes about my “laser-pointer” from the Chrysler students. I immediately changed the direction of the class from an automation/motion control theme, to a theme about how disgusting their attitude and work ethic was and how they stood a slim chance of getting a legitimate job outside of Chrysler. I gave this lecture for a good 20-minutes while many of the students sat in shocked silence. From that point on, the class when quite well with positive interaction from all the Chrysler students. Two of the students actually thanked me for this “scolding” reality check.

I firmly believe this poor employee climate is not so much from their own doing, but perhaps more so from disillusionment by CEOs reaping such huge financial packages, setting bad examples to employees, (ie; corporate jets to Washington), and questionable management.

I'll spare you some of my other “horror stories” I've gleaned from working inside the Chrysler organization, but leave you with this last item; The best American-made vehicle I've ever bought is our Honda Accord, while the best foreign-made vehicle I've ever bought is our Dodge truck…. . I think this says a lot about the American worker, and casts much doubt on American management.

We now see that the Chrysler assembly plant in Newark is closing their doors for good this weekend. Go figure.

With articles like this, 10 Cars That Sank Detroit - FlowChart (usnews.com) we can see that our automakers have been building this poor legacy for years. They are making some fantastic vehicles now, but repairing their broken reputation will take some time. I hope they (we) can make it before its too late.

 

[Grizzly]

Steve;



Don't put an ounce of faith or belief in anything JD Powers or Forbes has to say. They have alway rated the best cars and trucks according to who advertise with them the most. I have far more trust in Consumer Reports, but even they, I sometimes have to question.



My experience has been that Honda and Toyota build far superior cars and trucks as well as Dodge trucks built in Mexico. Why Dodge trucks built in Mexico? They are not UAW. I purchased my first non American built car in 83, a Honda Accord and have never looked back. From that time on, it has been Honda and Toyota's. The very worst American cars and trucks I've had were made by Ford.